I have a 94 Dodge Dakota and recently the heater stopped blowing as hot as it used to and takes longer to heat up.(Before this, it used to heat up quick and blow really warm) One day as I was checking and topping off all my fluids, I noticed wires (that were plugged into the firewall on the passenger side) smoking then the heater stopped blowing as hot and doesn't warm up as quick. Any suggestions on what caused this and how to quickly & or easily fix it for cheap? I'm on a tight budget and can't afford another hefty setback. Thank You in advance.

can you tell me how many wires were affected and what their colors were? Can you follow the wires and see where they come from and where they go to?

your heater control should be cable operated. (don't use electrical wires) Your heater core should get hot from the engine coolant getting hot and the temperature door moves by cable to close off the cold side and get hot. It closes off the hot side to get cold.

Is your engine temperature run where it normally does? is the engine temperature any warmer or colder than usual? You could feel the two heater hoses that go to the heater core and see if they are both hot. If your normal engine temp. is around 200 degrees the hoses should be very hot to the touch. Are both hoses hot? that will let you know if coolant flow is passing through the heater core. If one hose is much hotter that the other then you probably have a restriction in the core. (or low flow which could be air in the system) Make sure the coolant in the radiator is full.